Pneumatic feeder for plural maker systems

ABSTRACT

A tobacco feeder is coupled to two multiple cigarette maker systems through two tubes, one for each system. The feeder is driven by a two-speed motor. When only one system requires tobacco, the feeder is driven at low speed, whereas it will be switched to the higher speed when both systems require tobacco simultaneously.

1111 53,829,164 Aug. 113, 1974 2,920,355 1/1960 Clark 2,948,569 8/1960 Bodner................. 3,414,330 12/1968 Trutzschler.......,...................

1 PNEUMATIC FEEDER FOR PLURAL MAKER SYSTEMS [75] Inventor: John Schoeb, Petersburg, Va.

[73] Assignee: Brown & Williamson Tobacco Primary Examiner-Robert B. Reeves Corporation, Louisville, Ky. Assistant Examiner-Hadd Lane Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Finn Sept 1972 Farabow & Garrett egan, Henderson,

[22] Filed:

[21] Appl. No.: 288,497

[57] ABSTRACT A tobacco feeder is cou 52 us. 302/28, 198/76, 198/232 51 int. B65g53/04 Pledwtwo multlple cgarette maker systems through two tubes, one for each system. The feeder is driven by a two-speed motor. When only one system re [58] Field of Search quires tobacco, the feeder is driven w speed, whereas it will be switched to the 11 speed when both systems re neously.

igher quire tobacco simultaat lo [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures 1,468,966 9/1923 Herington.............................302/42 2,827,333 3/1958 302/42 X PAIENIEB mm 3x914 SHEET 2 [1F 2 PNEUMATIC FEEDER FOR PLURAL MAKER SYSTEMS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In commonly assigned US. Pat. No. 3,386,773, granted June 4, 1968, a pneumatic tobacco feed system is disclosed which utilizes individual feeders for pneumatically feeding tobacco to a single system or bank of cigarette makers through a main feed tube or pipe. In actual practice, a single feeder will ordinarily feed ten cigarette makers. As the number of cigarette makers increases, naturally more feeders are required. Available space eventually becomes scarce and a problem is therefore created in accommodating the required number of feeders. Again, capital expenditure for feeders becomes a significant factor. These problems are compounded by modern trends in cigarette merchandising of a large number of different varieties of brands of cigarettes. Each brand requires an individual feeder. In this connection, more than one brand of cigarettes may also be run on one bank or system of makers. Another factor requiring upgrading of the feeder technology is the introduction of relatively high speed cigarette making machines which require increased through-put of the tobacco. feeders.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a pneumatic feeder for feeding one or both of two multi-cigarette maker systems or banks.

The principal object of the present invention is to utilize one feeder for feeding two tobacco conveying pipes, with each pipe leading to a multi-cigarette maker system.

Another object is to effectively double the output of a pneumatic feeding system of the foregoing type.

A further object is to significantly decrease the space requirements, and at the same time maintain at a minimum all costs of equipment and installation of a pneumatic feeding system of the foregoing type.

Stillanother object is to provide a feeder with relatively increased tobacco through-put for modern high speed cigarette making machines.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description which is to be taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagramatic view showing the manner in which the feeder of the present invention is coupled for actuation with the pair of main feed pipes leading to the independent maker systems;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of thefeeder and the associated pair of feed pipes;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the feeder; and

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the feeder taken along the lines of 44 of FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The pneumatic system disclosed in the above referenced patent and to which the present invention is related is designed to convey cut tobacco from tobacco storage areas to making machines automatically and as required by the making machines. Ordinarily, a sensing device in each making machine hopper operates to de tect a low level of tobacco. A request is then made by this particular cigarette making machine for more tobacco. Air flow is established in the pneumatic feed system and when a prescribed conveying velocity is reached, the feeder is energized and tobacco flow is es tablished between the storage area and the selected making machine. At this machine, a tobacco discharger of the type disclosed in US. Pat. No. 3,386,773 or 3,580,644 receives the tobacco and separates it from the air stream. When the desired amount of tobacco has been collected by the discharger, the feeder is deenergized and the collected tobacco is discharged into the associated making machine hopper.

In the drawings, the pneumatic conveying system of the type disclosed in US. Pat. No. 3,386,773 will include a cut tobacco storage area at which is located feeder 10 incorporating the teachings of the present invention for feeding tobacco to the cigarette making machine systems connected with main feed pipes 12a and 12b. The operation of feeder 10 is controlled by means of pressure differential switches 14a and 14b associated with the respective main feed pipes 12a and 12b. Whe the air flow within these feed pipes reaches conveying velocity following a demand signal from a cigarette maker, the pressure differential switch 14a or 14b as the case may be senses this condition and causes the feeder 10 to be energized. If there be a demand for tobacco to be conveyed through both lines, 12a and 12b, feeder 10 will operate at higher speeds to increase its output to satisfy this demand. This aspect of the invention will be discussed in greater detail shortly.

The main feed pipes 12a and 1211 are both connected directly to a dual discharge chute: 16 which is at the outlet end of the feeder 10. This chute 16 is disclosed in commonly assigned patent application Ser. No. 288,569, filed on even date herewith and entitled Transition Chute." It will suffice to say that the chute 16 is designed to direct the tobacco of the feeder 10 into the main feed pipes 12a and 12b individually as well as simultaneously, both efficiently and without clogging, blockage or choking of the passageways by the tobacco.

The feeder 10 includes a hopper 18 which receives the tobacco to be conveyed to the cigarette makers. lnteriorly of the hopper 18 is conveyor belt 20 extending over suitably journaled pulleys 22 and 24, one of which is suitably connected with the output shaft or motor 26. Photocells 28 and 30 are employed to regulate the feed of tobacco into the hopper 18, the former initiating the feed, while the latter cuts it off. The belt 28 is adapted to transfer tobacco onto a metering belt 32, forming part of a metering section which also includes a doffer 34, both of which cooperate in transferring tobacco into the chute 16. The metering belt 32 is mounted on rollers 36 and 38, and together with doffer 34 is driven by two-speed motor 40. The photocell 4-2 is conveniently located behind the doffer 34 and operates to sense the amount of accumulation of tobacco on the belt 32. When this accumulation is low, the motor 26 is actuated to operate belt 20 and when the accumulation reaches the level of the photocell, the motor 26 is deactivated to stop the movement of the belt 20. The motor 40 in a successful application of the present invention was a General Electric two-speed motor identified as an integral parallel shaft, gear motor, frame No. Kl45tb229, 1% or 5 1 horsepower, 1125 or 62.5 rpm output, drip proof enclosure with electrically released disc-type brake. A two-speed relay circuit 44 interposed between the two-speed motor 40 and the pressure sensing switches 14a and 14b operates to actuate either the low speed or high speed side of the motor 40, depending upon whether one or both of lines 12a and 12b respectively are calling for tobacco. The circuit 44 in accordance with the successful embodiment was a Cutler Hammer No. 973hl09ll two-speed single winding magnetic starter circuit. The motor 40 either cuts off or increases the feed of tobacco instantly. The instant transition from low to high speed minimizes starving of the demanding makers and high to low speed eliminates choking of the chute 16 by the tobacco.

Thus, when a cigarette maker demands tobacco, the pressure switch 14a or 14b, as the case may be, senses when conveying velocity is reached to actuate the relay circuit 44 to energize the low speed side of the motor 40. If there is a call for tobacco at any time by both lines 12a and 12b as the result of the actuation of pressure sensing switches 14a and 1419, the relay circuitry 44 will instantly energize the high speed side of the motor 40. When going from high speed to low speed, it is preferred that there be a temporary braking in the motor 40. r

It is also contemplated by the present invention to couple feeder to more than one maker system in which case. more than two feed tubes or pipes 12 will be employed. Similarly, motor 26 may be of the variable speed variety where multiple speeds are desired.

Thus, the several aforenoted objects and advantages are most effectively attained. Although a single, somewhat preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed and described in detail herein, it should be understood that this invention is in no sense limited thereby and its scope is to be determined by that of the appended claims.

I claim:

l. A system for feeding tobacco from a supply source to at least two cigarette making machines, said system comprising:

a. a frame,

b. a transition chute operatively associated with said frame and having tobacco receiving and discharge end portions,

c. at least one conveyor belt assembly, operatively mounted to said frame and associated with said chute, said assembly comprising a conveyor belt having an input end and a discharge end, said discharge end being positioned above said chute to drop tobacco in the receiving end portion of the transition chute, said assembly further comprising means for operatively supporting said belt and means operatively connected to the belt for driving said belt, said driving means including a multispeed motor having at least two speeds for driving the conveyor belt at least at a first speed and second greater speed to vary the feed rate to the transition chute, the conveyor assembly further including a braking means operatively connected to said motor for instantly braking the driving action of said motor during shifts from the second greater speed to the first speed when a shift occurs from feeding through two pipes to feeding through one pipe and to instantly stop said driving action when the demand ceases to limit further accumulation of tobacco in said chute to that already delivered from the conveyor and falling into the chute,

d. at least two feed pipes operatively connecting the discharge end portion of said transition chute to respective cigarette making machines, said pipes being in communication with the interior of said chute to draw tobacco from said chute as the tobacco is deposited thereby the conveyor belt assembly and upon demand by the cigarette making machines,

e. means operatively connected to said feed pipes for creating desired air pressure therein to draw the tobacco from the transition chute through said pipes to the cigarette making machines,

f. valve means operatively mounted in each of said feed pipes to selectively open and close said pipes in response to demand levels at the cigarette making machines, and

g. means connected to said feed pipes for actuating said motor at said first speed when only one of the pipes is supplying tobacco, at said second speed when both of said pipes are supplying tobacco and to cease operation when neither pipe is supplying tobacco, said speed transitions and cessation being instantaneous to prevent starving of tobacco or choking of tobacco in the chute.

2. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for actuating said motor include a relay circuit coupled with the motor for actuating the motor at the multi-speeds and at least two air pressure sensitive means coupled with the relay circuit for sensing the air pressure in the respective pipes and each adapted to be actuated when there is a-demand for tobacco in the associated pipe.

3. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the transition chute has a single enlarged entrance end for receiving tobacco and a pair of outlet pipes for transferring the tobacco to the main feed pipes.

4. The invention in accordance with claim 3 wherein the conveyor belt assembly, includes a belt conveyor having a hopper end and a discharge end for transferring tobacco to a metering station, and a metering conveyor at the metering station driven by the multi-speed motor means for receiving the tobacco discharged by the belt conveyor and transferring it to the chute.

5. The invention in accordance with claim 4 wherein level sensing means are provided for sensing the level of the tobacco on the metering conveyor and when the level exceeds a predetermined limit the operation of the belt conveyor is stopped.

6. The invention in accordance with claim 5 wherein a doffer is driven in synchronization with the metering conveyor. 

1. A system for feeding tobacco from a supply source to at least two cigarette making machines, said system comprising: a. a frame, b. a transition chute operatively associated with said frame and having tobacco receiving and discharge end portions, c. at least one conveyor belt assembly, operatively mounted to said frame and associated with said chute, said assembly comprising a conveyor belt having an input end and a discharge end, said discharge end being positioned above said chute to drop tobacco in the receiving end portion of the transition chute, said assembly further comprising means for operatively supporting said belt and means operatively connected to the belt for driving said belt, said driving means including a multi-speed motor having at least two speeds for driving the conveyor belt at least at a first speed and second greater speed to vary the feed rate to the transition chute, the conveyor assembly further including a braking means operatively connected to said motor for instantly braking the driving action of said motor during shifts from the second greater speed to the first speed when a shift occurs from feeding through two pipes to feeding through one pipe and to instantly stop said driving action when the demand ceases to limit further accumulation of tobacco in said chute to that already delivered from the conveyor and falling into the chute, d. at least two feed pipes operatively connecting the discharge end portion of said transition chute to respective cigarette making machines, said pipes being in communication with the interior of said chute to draw tobacco from said chute as the tobacco is deposited thereby the conveyor belt assembly and upon demand by the cigarette making machines, e. means operatively connected to said feed pipes for creating desired air pressure therein to draw the tobacco from the transition chute through said pipes to the cigarette making machines, f. valve means operatively mounted in each of said feed pipes to selectively open and close said pipes in response to demand levels at the cigarette making machines, and g. means connected to said feed pipes for actuating said motor at said first speed when only one of the pipes is supplying tobacco, at said second speed when both of said pipes are supplying tobacco and to cease operation when neither pipe is supplying tobacco, said speed transitions and cessation being instantaneous to prevent starving of tobacCo or choking of tobacco in the chute.
 2. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the means for actuating said motor include a relay circuit coupled with the motor for actuating the motor at the multi-speeds and at least two air pressure sensitive means coupled with the relay circuit for sensing the air pressure in the respective pipes and each adapted to be actuated when there is a demand for tobacco in the associated pipe.
 3. The invention in accordance with claim 1 wherein the transition chute has a single enlarged entrance end for receiving tobacco and a pair of outlet pipes for transferring the tobacco to the main feed pipes.
 4. The invention in accordance with claim 3 wherein the conveyor belt assembly, includes a belt conveyor having a hopper end and a discharge end for transferring tobacco to a metering station, and a metering conveyor at the metering station driven by the multi-speed motor means for receiving the tobacco discharged by the belt conveyor and transferring it to the chute.
 5. The invention in accordance with claim 4 wherein level sensing means are provided for sensing the level of the tobacco on the metering conveyor and when the level exceeds a predetermined limit the operation of the belt conveyor is stopped.
 6. The invention in accordance with claim 5 wherein a doffer is driven in synchronization with the metering conveyor. 